By Seth Straeter and Grace Barnum
INTRODUCTION
Media and music have always shared a powerful and very dynamic relationship. From the early days of radio broadcasts with people like Edward R Murrow, to the digital era of streaming platforms and social media, music has found its voice through various forms of media. Together, they shape the culture we have today, influence public opinion, and drive social movements. The synergy between media and music is not only about promotion but also about storytelling, identity, and connection.
One of the most visible ways music and media interact is through television, film, and online content. Soundtracks enhance emotions in movies and shows, turning scenes into memorable moments. For instance, a dramatic scene in a film can become iconic largely because of the background music that intensifies the emotion. Likewise, music videos serve as both promotional tools and artistic expressions, blending visual storytelling with lyrics and rhythm.
In the age of social media, platforms like TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram have revolutionized how music is discovered and shared. A 15-second clip of a song can go viral and boost an artist’s popularity overnight. These platforms also allow fans to engage with music more interactively, creating dances, memes, and trends that further the reach of a song. In this way, the media doesn’t just support music, it becomes part of the music experience.
HISTORY OF MUSIC IN THE MEDIA
From the earliest days of media, music has been used as a form of expression and entertainment for audiences across many different platforms. Most notably, the rise in popularity of radio in the 1920s and 30s made a huge impact on the music industry. It was a way for artists to get immediate attention for their work. It became the main platform for collectively sharing music with mass audiences, skyrocketing careers for many artists such as Bing Crosby and Billie Holiday (McDougald, 2005).
The early 20th century also saw the rise of the silent film era. Without dialogue, music acted as the element of emotion. Each piece was carefully composed to convey the feelings the creator wanted to communicate to the audience. Each note had a purpose, creating the tone of the film. Each song helped tell the story, guiding the audience through moments of joy, fear, sadness, or suspense. In a way, the music became its own kind of voice, saying what the characters could not. It brought these films to life in ways that visuals or dialogue couldn’t have (Film Symphony, 2025).
In today’s society, modern media shares many qualities with radio and silent films. Just like radio provided an outlet for artists to get new listeners and connect to people from all over the globe, social media also offers this same opportunity. As for film, music is still an extremely important element to convey emotions on top of visuals and dialogue. The music industry will continue to evolve in new ways while keeping many of the same essential components of the past.
MUSIC IN FILM AND TELEVISION
Movies and music have long been the giants of shaping popular culture, and their influence on media is incredibly powerful. As expressive art forms, they not only entertain but also shape societal values, set trends, and influence public discourse. In today’s world, the effects of movies and music ripple through various forms of media, altering how information is presented, discussed, and consumed.
One of the most significant ways movies and music impact media is through cultural influence. These art forms often reflect current social issues, from mental health and racial justice to gender equality and political unrest.
There are countless articles and resources that explore music’s impact on film, but two that stood out to me were The Role of Music in Film and TV Production (C&I Studios, 2023) and The Importance of Music in Film and TV (Raindance, 2020). Both highlight how music shapes the emotional tone of a film and emphasize its significance in storytelling. Just as music helps individuals express their identity, it also gives films a unique identity by enhancing characters, setting the mood, and making scenes more memorable.
Some of the most impactful movies in our history have been followed by excellent soundtracks. Without those soundtracks, a lot of the most iconic films wouldn’t feel the same. Composers like John Williams gave movies like Back to the Future, Indiana Jones, and Star Wars their identity. You can’t really think about those movies without hearing the music in your head.
Movies also bring in pop culture figures, like singers such as Taylor Swift, who have contributed their voices and music to different films. Their presence adds even more identity to the movie. Music is such an essential part of film. You really can’t underestimate how important it is, and that’s one of the coolest things about it.
When a movie or song taps into a powerful theme, the media usually picks up on it and spreads the message even further. You’ll often see news stories, social media posts, podcasts, and blogs diving into the deeper meaning behind it. For example, if a film focuses on something like systemic racism, it might spark panel discussions on TV or lead to opinion pieces in major publications. It’s one way entertainment helps start real conversations in the world around us.
Movies and music also play a key role in setting trends. A successful movie can popularize specific fashion styles, catchphrases, or even attitudes, while a viral song might inspire new dance challenges or slang. These trends often spread rapidly through media platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube. Journalists and content creators then report on or mimic these trends, further embedding them into the cultural landscape.
The relationship between movies, music, and media is marked by cross-media promotion. A new blockbuster might feature a hit soundtrack that climbs the music charts, while that same song may be used in commercials, trailers, or social media clips. Media outlets cover these releases in interviews, behind-the-scenes features, and reviews, creating a feedback loop that boosts exposure for all involved. This ensures that both music and film stay relevant in the public eye while also driving traffic to media channels that cover them.
Overall, movies and music also have the ability to shape public opinion. A powerful documentary or a protest anthem can bring awareness to underrepresented stories and causes, often influencing how audiences view the world around them. Media outlets often take cues from these cultural moments, adjusting their coverage to align with public interest or moral concerns. In doing so, movies and music indirectly influence the topics and tone of media discourse.
SOCIAL MEDIA’S INFLUENCE
Social media has transformed the way music is discovered, streamed, and experienced. Platforms such as TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube have become powerful outlets for artists and music lovers to share music. One viral video can change a small artist’s life in ways that traditional media never could.
TikTok specifically has exponentially changed the course of the music industry. Since its release in 2018, the app has been a place where users can bond over their shared taste in music. It is used as a platform for small artists to grow their audience in a personal way. Unlike radio or streaming, artists can get direct feedback from fans and interact with them to get their input on music they have recently released, as well as new ideas. TikTok is also a space for artists to grow their careers by having a song go viral. A fifteen-second snippet can change their whole life. Artists such as Olivia Rodrigo, Tyla, and Addison Ray wouldn’t be where they are today without the app.
Although the instant recognition from TikTok is mostly positive, there are some negative aspects of using such short clips that are important to discuss. As for the message an artist is trying to get across, a small snippet may not be enough for listeners to get the idea. Lyrics can be overlooked, and many people will only hear the song without listening to it. Songs can tell a story, and if someone were to only hear fifteen seconds from the middle of a story, they may not know how it was meant to be interpreted.
Unlike TikTok, YouTube is a platform known for long-form videos. Before TikTok became the “music app”, small artists were gaining attention from YouTube. Multiple mainstream artists got their start from this platform. Some of these artists include Justin Bieber, Ed Sheeran, Tate McRae, and Shawn Mendes. YouTube allowed those with a limited budget or resources a chance at success.
MUSIC VIDEOS AND VISUAL MEDIA
In the music industry, music videos play a vital role in giving artists an outlet to express their creations and ideas. They tell a story that could only be expressed through visuals when lyrics may not be enough at times. There are many different forms of expression in music videos. From simple lyric videos to entire visual albums, these videos can bring a whole new dimension to a song, adding layers of meaning and emotion. Music videos allow artists to explore different themes, showcase their creativity, and connect with their audience on a deeper level. Whether it’s through stunning cinematography, intricate choreography, or powerful storytelling, music videos have become a key part of how artists communicate with fans, making them an essential element of modern music culture.
THE FUTURE OF MUSIC IN THE MEDIA
Media has come a long way, from the earliest silent films to today’s immersive video games and streaming platforms. As technology continues to grow, especially with the rise of artificial intelligence (AI), the way music is created, shared, and experienced is changing in big ways.
The future of music in media will be shaped by AI, not just in how it’s produced, but also in how it’s personalized, consumed, and legally regulated. There are tons of articles out there about AI, but one that stood out to me is “AI’s Impact on Music in 2025: Licensing, Creativity and Industry Survival” (Berger, 2024). It takes a deep dive into how AI is already influencing the music world and what we can expect in 2025 and beyond. As technology continues to evolve, AI will too. I think if we make sure to regulate it properly and avoid relying on it too heavily, we can build a healthy, balanced relationship with AI in the music industry.
One of the most significant impacts of AI on music is in its creation. AI tools like ChatGPT, or any music AI creator, can now compose full songs complete with melody, lyrics, and even vocals within minutes. To me, this is the most fascinating part. These technologies can generate music tailored to specific moods, genres, or narrative needs, offering an unprecedented level of customization for filmmakers, advertisers, game developers, and other media creators. In the near future, we can expect AI-generated soundtracks to become a staple across all forms of media. Producers will increasingly rely on AI to generate background scores that adapt to different scenes or audience emotions, enhancing storytelling while saving time and costs.
AI promises to revolutionize the way audiences interact with music through personalization. Streaming services and interactive media could leverage AI to create adaptive soundtracks that respond to a viewer’s preferences, activities, or even emotional states in real time, which is both scary and intriguing at the same time. We live in a world where a video game can dynamically change to match a player’s stress levels, or a streaming platform that subtly adjusts a show’s soundtrack to better suit the viewer’s mood. This kind of tailored musical experience could make the media feel even more immersive and emotionally resonant.
In the article “Is This a Deer I See? Socially Aware AI Adapts by Asking Questions of Humans” (Krishna, 2022), the author explores how AI adapts to human behavior by learning our actions and timing. This adaptation process allows AI to interact more effectively with us, making it a fascinating read on the evolution of machine learning.
However, the rise of AI in music also brings complex legal and ethical challenges. AI models are often trained on existing music, leading to concerns about copyright infringement and the exploitation of artists’ work without proper credit or compensation. As AI becomes more sophisticated over time, it can convincingly mimic the styles and voices of well-known musicians such as Frank Sinatra or Taylor Swift, to name a few, raising further questions about ownership and authenticity. The media industry will likely see new legal frameworks emerge to address issues of intellectual property, licensing, and the rights of artists versus AI-generated content. Navigating these challenges will be crucial to ensuring that the future of music in media is fair and sustainable for all creators.
Importantly, while AI offers powerful new tools, it is unlikely to fully replace human musicians. Instead, we are witnessing the rise of human AI collaboration. Artists are using AI to assist in composing, arranging, and even performing music, pushing creative boundaries while maintaining the human emotion and originality that listeners deeply value. In the future, media soundtracks may often be the result of such collaborations, blending the efficiency and innovation of AI with the authenticity and expressiveness of human artistry.
CONCLUSION
As you can see there’s many impacts and tools of how media and music go together hand in hand, rather that be all the new streaming services, platforms such as TikTok and YouTube, or film they all play a very important and in crucial role and shaping music as a media form, it brings people together and makes them realize that this world can have a few fun aspects in it just takes some time to find out, music brings people together and shows others that this world even though sometimes it can be a bit hard but we’re all in this together in a very creative way music not only immerses us into this world but it helps with our mental stability, shaping history as we know it, and just making people feel good all over music is a very inspirational and important tool that we have at our disposal and the greatest thing about the tool is that it’s up to us how it influences us and shapes us as human beings and for that aspect we believe it’s incredible
WORKS CITED
Berger, V. (2024, December 30). AI’s impact on music in 2025: Licensing, creativity and industry survival. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/virginieberger/2024/12/30/ais-impact-on-music-in-2025-licensing-creativity-and-industry-survival/
C&I Studios. (2023, May 5). The role of music in film and TV production. https://c-istudios.com/the-role-of-music-in-film-and-tv-production/
Film Symphony. (2024, April 17). The role, importance and use of music in silent cinema. https://filmsymphony.es/en/importancia-musica-cine-mudo/
Krishna, R. (2022, November 7). Is this a deer I see? Socially aware AI adapts by asking questions of humans. Stanford HAI. https://hai.stanford.edu/news/deer-i-see-socially-aware-ai-adapts-asking-questions-humans
McDougald, M. H. (2005, January 28). Radio broadcasting. New Georgia Encyclopedia. https://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/articles/arts-culture/radio-broadcasting/
Raindance. (2020, September 28). The importance of music on film & emotion. https://raindance.org/the-importance-of-music-on-film-emotion/